Rural Western Hunan: The Best Tujia Villages to Visit

Hi, I am baylee Chen, a tour guide in Zhangjiajie, as a Tujia local and a language enthusiast, I feel the urge to share the charm of my hometown with the world. All guides and plans are from my own personal experiences. No AI-generated or third party texts.

In this passage, I am going to share some rural hidden gems beyond the famous toursist spots and food origins and impressive ethnic histories, with practical tips for visiting Tujia ancient towns, and hidden places.

Zhangjiajie is one of the most interesting places to visit in China if you want to explore ethnic minority cultures, distinctive natural marvels and take unique photos. To my surprise, this mountain city has become more and more famous on the world stage since the blockbuster of Avatar movie in 2009. Naturally, if you’re a huge fan of Avatar, this spot cannot be missed. You should definitely plan to spend a minimum of one day wandering around the National Forest Park.

Besides that, the rural outskirts around Zhangjiajie remains vastly underrated. Neighbouring spots such as Seven Star Mountain, Dehang Miao Village, Binglang Valley and Qianzhou Ancient City are frequently overlooked by tourists. These are truly the best destinations to immerse yourself in unspoiled wilderness, experience authentic local rural life and dive deep into indigenous ethnic culture.

As a local, I hope international tourists to look at Zhangjiajie differently. I think this can be a big advantage. Since Zhangjiajie sits right in the middle of these regions, it is quite easy to add five more days in rural Zhangjiajie while also visiting other parts of southwest or south-central China. You could start in Chongqing, continue to Guiyang and the villages, then go east towards Fenghuang ancient town, Furong ancient town, Seven Star Mountain, Dehang Miao Village, Qianzhou Ancient City and Zhangjiajie. You can use rural Zhangjiajie as the cultural part of a bigger itinerary. This adds variety to the trip and makes the overall experience much more balanced.